Author Walter Isaacson has no problem using the word “crazy” to describe Elon Musk. – But I don’t have a simple answer to what is the secret behind his success, I can’t condense it into one sentence, says Isaacson to news. He is a professor of history and has previously published biographies of Apple founder Steve Jobs and artist Leonardo da Vinci. FAMOUS BIOGRAPHER: In addition to writing several biographies, Professor Walter Isaacson has also previously been an editor for Time Magazine. Photo: Simon & Schuster Now it’s Elon Musk’s turn. For two years, Isaacson has followed the Tesla founder who more or less accidentally took over Twitter and wants to send the planet’s richest to the planet Mars. – He is one of the greatest inventors of our time, says Isaacson. Messiah complex Despite the fact that last year he took over one of the world’s most popular social media platforms, Musk is not particularly good with people, Isaacson points out. In the biography, Isaacson outlines a billionaire who constantly gets into conflicts with other billionaires – often because he is consistently uncompromising. – Nevertheless, he has a deeper understanding of humanity’s needs than most people I have come across. He feels a calling, says Isaacson. “THE CALLED”: Isaacson believes Musk feels a real desire to provide solutions to humanity’s greatest challenges. Photo: AFP He believes Musk really wants to solve humanity’s challenges, that he suffers from a messiah complex. – There are people who are concerned about humanity, but who at the same time are not very good at being human. We don’t like them. But it is also the part of his personality that makes him so hardcore and intense, says Isaacson. Concerned about machines, Isaacson speaks eagerly and with fascination about the Tesla founder who, at the time of writing, heads six different companies. Musk has also helped found both OpenAI and PayPal. – Musk has led us into the era of electric cars, which no one thought could be implemented so quickly. Not to mention what he’s doing with SpaceX and space travel, says Isaacson. SKY HIGH: It was in May this year that a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket became the first non-governmental rocket to land on the International Space Station (ISS). In the rocket were two astronauts from Saudi Arabia. One of them was Rayyanah Barnawi, the first Saudi Arabian woman in space. Photo: AFP Musk became the first to sell a million electric cars through Tesla. Isaacson believes that the commitment to electric cars and reusable rockets comes from a desire to play a decisive role in the world’s transition to electricity and renewable energy. – It is very typical of Musk to come up with big and epic ideas that will change the world, says Isaacson. – Often he also finds business models that make it work, he adds and shows, among other things, how the delivery of Starlink satellites has made SpaceX profitable. But in recent years there is something that has worried Musk more than most anything else, says Isaacson. – Elon Musk is sincerely and deeply concerned that machines will develop consciousness and their own will, explains Isaacson. Read about robots taking over the world The first time Elon Musk heard about the possibilities of artificial intelligence was in 2012. Then he met AI researcher Demis Hassabis at a conference. According to the new biography, it was Hassabis who planted the idea of dangerous artificial intelligence in the Tesla founder’s head. But already as a child, Elon Musk had ideas about robots that could take over the globe. Among other things, he was a faithful reader of the books of the Russian science fiction author Isaac Asimov, says Isaacson. SCI-FI FAN: Already as a boy, Elon Musk understood the fascination with robots that ruled the world. Photo: Privat / Simon & Schuster – Have you read Asimov, you also know that he always outlines a way to take control of the robots, to prevent them from taking over the planet and getting rid of us humans, he says and adds: – This isn’t something you and I worry about when we wake up in the morning, it seems distant. I used to think he was overdramatic when he talked about these things. But eventually he understood that for Musk this was bloody serious. – I have gradually learned that when Musk appears overdramatic it is always partly because he has a lot of faith in what he is talking about, says Isaacson. – He sincerely believes that if we don’t control AI, it could become really dangerous, continues the history professor. Want to control AI Musk wants to prevent development from running rampant. His solution is to try to control it, according to Isaacson. Musk was among the technology leaders who before the summer sent an open letter to OpenAI asking them to stop development for six months. Many thought he did this to hopefully make up for some of the head start in development. At least one professor called Musk duplicitous. “MAN BARN”: In many ways, Elon Musk never quite grew up, Isaacson believes: Part of the motivation for taking over Twitter was to be able to rule the playground he was not the king of as a child. Photo: AFP Isaacson does not rule out that the desire for a competitive advantage played a role. But he believes fear was the main reason Musk signed the letter. – I think his concern is completely sincere and that he would have appreciated if the development was put on hold, so that people could take in what consequences AI actually has. But since that’s not going to happen, he wants his share of the cake, Isaacson continues. In recent years, Musk has gathered all his AI projects under the same umbrella, in the company xAI. xAI Neuralink: aims to implant microchips in the human brain Optimus: a human-like robot Dojo: a super-strong computer that will use millions of videos to train a neural network to stimulate the human brain Tesla: AI development has driven Musk to become very keen to make their cars self-driving, according to Isaacson In addition, Musk is currently developing a ChatGPT competitor – Musk needs control, says Isaacson. – Thus, he develops projects that relate to AI in many different ways. The vision of human control over computers is clearly evident in Musk’s work with Neuralink. The company is working on developing microchips that will be able to connect our brains with computers. Neuralink itself believes that this technology is ready to be tested in just 5-6 years. – I think Musk thinks that human control is the only thing that can prevent the machines from running wild and developing their own intentions and their own will, says Isaacson. OPTIMUS: One of Musk’s AI innovations is the humanoid robot Optimus. The plan is to eventually test the robots at the Tesla factories. Photo: Simon & Schuster Broke with OpenAI In the book, Isaacson describes Musk’s fear that Google and Microsoft will dominate AI development. Microsoft is the main shareholder in OpenAI. Just days after launching GPT-4 in March, Google launched its chatbot rival Bard. Musk is said to be disappointed with the development of OpenAI, which he himself co-founded. – He thought the company should be open, that the code should be open, says Isaacson. BREAK: Elon Musk broke with partner Sam Altman and the company OpenAI in 2018. The reason is said to be that Altman and the rest of the OpenAI team refused to let Musk take over management of the company. Photo: AFP Musk broke with OpenAI and founder Sam Altman in 2018 after he tried to take control of the company and install himself as its leader. However, that was out of the question for OpenAI. After Musk’s departure, Altman became president of the company. In a comprehensive article about OpenAI’s growth and future published in the magazine Wired last week, it appears that the company’s vision is to be the first to develop general artificial intelligence – i.e. artificial intelligence that “thinks for itself”. ROMANTIC: According to Isaacson, Musk has a strong belief in romance. This may help to explain that he has a total of 11 children. Here together with on-and-off girlfriend, the artist Grimes, and one of their children, X. Photo: Privat / Simon & Schuster Not having control over this development should be among Musk’s greatest fears, according to Isaacson. – I think Musk wants the development of AI to take place in several different companies rather than being controlled by just Microsoft and Google. He himself tries to create an alternative, says Isaacson. Demonstration of power Isaacson does not hide how powerful Musk actually is. It became not least clear before the weekend, when it emerged that Elon Musk allegedly failed to activate internet satellites so that the Ukrainians could carry out a drone attack against Russia. The news interview with Isaacson was done before the leak about the Starlink satellites was published in CNN. On Twitter/X, Isaacson writes that Musk has avoided activating the satellites for fear of worsening the war. BRUTAL CHILDHOOD: Elon Musk grew up in South Africa, where he was often beaten by his peers. In addition, his father is said to have been short-tempered and unstable, according to the biography. Photo: Privat / Simon & Schuster In recent years, Musk has established himself as the world’s richest person. After several phases, his companies continue to grow. – Yes, sometimes he blows things up, sometimes he goes on the run. The first three rockets he launched were unsuccessful. But now he is the only person who can deliver rockets that take humans into orbit. More people use X now than used Twitter a year ago. This is a complex story about a guy who keeps playing with fire and sometimes burns himself and other people.
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– He is sincerely and deeply concerned – news Culture and entertainment
